In the Field: Photo Blog by Richard Wong

Photography field reports by Richard Wong. Richard’s work has been published in magazines, books, advertising, and offers fine art prints of his work. Images may be licensed as rights-managed stock photos by contacting Richard directly at Richard@rwongphoto.com or (626) 422-6151. California stock photography, fine art prints, photo blog: www.rwongphoto.com

Gam Saan, Land of the Golden Mountain

Posted on | May 24, 2007 |

If you’ve seen the regular portion of my website, you might have noticed the Wild West Gold Rush theme going on and wondered why I designed it that way. If you’ve read my bio and know a little about early Northern California history then perhaps you might know why. But I suspect that most people probably wouldn’t know so I will tell you a little about my history.

When gold was discovered in the western Sierra Nevada foothills in 1848, word quickly got out to traveling Chinese merchants in the San Francisco area. They returned home to Southern China (Guangdong / Canton) and told their relatives about the “Land of Golden Mountains.” That region of rural China had always been very poor and still poor to this day due to agriculturally-poor soil. So a number of men left China for the United States to become miners in the Sierra. Their goal was to make enough money in a few years and come back home to provide a more prosperous lifestyle for their families. It never quite worked out for most of them due to several reasons. One of which was intense racial discrimination in the mining camps, with another reason being the language and cultural barrier. The Chinese were seen as hard-working, quiet people with strange customs.

Over time, the Chinese adapted by becoming a service-oriented group for their Caucasian counterparts. They provided Asian medicinal herbs and set up shop as merchants both to each other and to the other ethnic groups. The Chinese taught the Caucasians innovative farming techniques to improve efficiency of their crops. A combination of their extreme hard-work while mining and their aggressiveness in establishing businesses, the Chinese earned a reputation as efficient workers. By the time the U.S. started building the Central Pacific Railroad, California had solicited the help of foreign labor; mainly Chinese to build the most dangerous portions of track in the Sierra from Sacramento thru the Donner Pass in winter to Utah. Many died during this period but the railroad eventually was connected with the other portion of the Transcontinental Railroad which originated from Omaha, Nebraska. California during this period from the 1860’s to the 1880’s was still very much a land of outlaws. In some respects, one can travel through certain portions of California today and still experience some of that historical legacy.

Chinese railroad workers in the Sierra Nevada mountains at the California State Railroad Museum, Old Town Sacramento, California Photo: Chinese railroad workers in the Sierra Nevada mountains at the California State Railroad Museum, Old Town Sacramento, California

My great-great grandfather immigrated to San Francisco during the railroad-building era and since then my family has had roots in America in some form or another. As of today, I believe that all of my immediate family members reside in the United States. But if it weren’t for the Chinese men who came here to build the railroad system, I wouldn’t be here. I’ve always had an immense respect for the history of our country and the Gold Rush era has been of a particular fascination of mine for obvious reasons. That is why my website looks the way it is. Now excuse me while I try to find a way back to San Francisco… or dream about it for tonight. It’s late.

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Comments

3 Responses to “Gam Saan, Land of the Golden Mountain”

  1. Trevor Carpenter
    May 26th, 2007 @ 10:38 pm

    I love California’s history, so checkered with variety and beauty. I also appreciate your efforts to understand your family history in the context of history. So many live with some sort of generational bitterness and you seem to look at the larger picture.

    Bravo, for the photo, its story and your connection to them both.

  2. Richard
    May 27th, 2007 @ 11:04 am

    Thanks Trevor. I was thinking last night while driving home that California is the most diverse place on the planet not just from the people, but the natural landscape as well. We have our problems as a big state for sure but the good far outweighs the bad.

    Perhaps I’ll develop bitterness 30-40 years from now… :-) I hope not though.

  3. Ron Niebrugge
    May 27th, 2007 @ 3:41 pm

    That is interesting - thanks for sharing Richard!

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